Friday, October 31, 2008

The least qualified candidate in American history — at one of the most dangerous points in history.

Some elections are routine, some are important, and some are historic. If Senator John McCain wins this election, it will probably go down in history as routine. But if Senator Barack Obama wins, it is more likely to be historic — and catastrophic.

Once the election is over, the glittering generalities of rhetoric and style will mean nothing. Everything will depend on performance in facing huge challenges, domestic and foreign.

Performance is where Barack Obama has nothing to show for his political career, either in Illinois or in Washington.

Policies that he proposes under the banner of “change” are almost all policies that have been tried repeatedly in other countries — and failed repeatedly in other countries.

Politicians telling businesses how to operate? That’s been tried in countries around the world, especially during the second half of the 20th century. It has failed so often and so badly that even socialist and communist governments were freeing up their markets by the end of the century.

The economies of China and India began their take-off into high rates of growth when they got rid of precisely the kinds of policies that Obama is advocating for the United States under the magic mantra of “change.”

Putting restrictions on international trade in order to save jobs at home? That was tried here with the Hawley-Smoot tariff during the Great Depression.

Unemployment was 9 percent when that tariff was passed to save jobs, but unemployment went up instead of down, and reached 25 percent before the decade was over.

Higher taxes to “spread the wealth around,” as Obama puts it? The idea of redistributing wealth has turned into the reality of redistributing poverty, in countries where wealth has fled and the production of new wealth has been stifled by a lack of incentives.

Economic disasters, however, may pale by comparison with the catastrophe of Iran with nuclear weapons. Glib rhetoric about Iran being “a small country,” as Obama called it, will be a bitter irony for Americans who will have to live in the shadow of a nuclear threat that cannot be deterred, as that of the Soviet Union could be, by the threat of a nuclear counter-attack.

Suicidal fanatics cannot be deterred. If they are willing to die and we are not, then we are at their mercy — and they have no mercy. Moreover, once they get nuclear weapons, that is a situation which cannot be reversed, either in this generation or in generations to come.

Is this the legacy we wish to leave our children and grandchildren, by voting on the basis of style and symbolism, rather than substance?

If Barack Obama thinks that such a catastrophe can be avoided by sitting down and talking with the leaders of Iran, then he is repeating a fallacy that helped bring on World War II.

In a nuclear age, one country does not have to send troops to occupy another country in order to conquer it. A country is conquered if another country can dictate who rules it, as the Mongols once did with Russia, and as Osama bin Laden tried to do when he threatened retaliation against places in the United States that voted for George W. Bush. But he didn’t have nuclear weapons to back up that threat — yet.

America has never been a conquered country, so it may be very hard for most Americans even to conceive what that can mean. After France was conquered in 1940, it was reduced to turning over some of its own innocent citizens to the Nazis to kill, just because those citizens were Jewish.

Do you think our leaders wouldn’t do that? Not even if the alternative was to see New York and Los Angeles go up in mushroom clouds? If I were Jewish, I wouldn’t bet my life on that.

What the Middle East fanatics want is not just our resources or even our lives, but our humiliation first, in whatever sadistic ways they can think of. Their lust for humiliation has already been repeatedly demonstrated in their videotaped beheadings that find such an eager market in the Middle East.

None of this can be prevented by glib talk, but only by character, courage and decisive actions — none of which Barack Obama has ever demonstrated.

Currently I am in the process of developing my Web Site; I am very excited about it and will let you know when it is completed ... hopefully by the end of the month if not sooner.

To celebrate the "Grand Openning" I will be holding a month long "Give-a-way" event andI want to invite all of you to participate. The prizes will appeal to all of you moms - I have a heart for moms of all ages, working, stay at home , grandmothers - just being a mom is the greatest privledege and responsibility ever - so to have some pretty things to do the everyday things makes life a little more fun. That is the goal of my website : Over The Top aprons.

as you know, aprons are back and women are delighting in wearing them. My Designing Style is to let you express your Personal Style ... be if fun and funky, chic or elegant, classic or charming .... I will be offering a range that you will enjoy wearing and giving. Oh, to have more time.... I have more ideas than time as I know the same is with all of you.

I ask for your patience ... I am anxious and ready to get this site going ... so wish me luck and check back soon for the unveiling of

Wednesday, October 29, 2008

May I introduce Anne of the blogsite: What Mommy Says! Well, What Mommy Says always counts and checking out this new blog will give you a lot of information about what's hot, what's not, what's in and where to find it.

I asked Anne if I could interview her so all of us could get better acquainted with her. As you know on the blogs we never know who we are visiting with or where they might be from. This is truly a Global Experience

Anne is from Pakistan. In asking here to share a little about herself she said, "People alwyas tell me I'm very strong minded which I guess is true to an extent. I've always had a very strong desire to be independent. I grew up in a household and a country (Pakistan) which weren't peaceful at all, so it was always an internal fight to make things "right" not only for myself but for others who needed that stability as well. Anne carries out this same attitude of helping others in her blog: WhatMommySays! - which is a review blog. Added to this she co-manages a parenting message board called parentscentral.net.

Anne is 32 years, happily married for nearly five years and a proud mother of 3 year old boy/girl twins. She was born and raised of Portuguese decent, in Pakistani and now lives in the cosmopolitan and very volatile city of Karachi. I asked Ann what was her passion that drives her to start each day. I love the answer she shared, "A chancre to do better today what I couldn't do yesterday is something I'm very passionate about, so it plays a big part. Also, my two kids who I get to watch grow. For them everything is exciting so what can I say, it's contagious."

Anne started her blogging journey after stumbling across the blogging world a few years ago and go hooked almost instantly. And very specially when she saw women from all walks of life transforming something as simple as a daily journal into a platform for themselves and others, with endless possibilities.

One of her most challenging parts of creating an online presence has been breaking through and finding a niche in a market which gets more saturated by the day. But, as she expresses, if it wasn't challenging, it wouldn't be fun. As far as a major frustration in developing a blog she finds it to be the technical side of things. She has yet to figure out a lot of things and attempting to teach herself has had its frustrating moments. I am sure that most of us can relate to that!

We all need a support system no matter what we undertake so I ask Ann who she draws from. I will let Ann tell you, "My husband with all his moral support and patience when I ignore him for hours at a time. My best online friend, Monica, who writes the great Mommy Brain Reports; she has been an endless source of information and encouragement to me for years now. And people like yourself (Corline of Over The Top Aprons) who give people like me chances.

Where does Anne see her blog going, does she have any plans for the future? For right now she hopes to help women promote themselves and their talents through her blog (What Mommy Says!). She would like to see it grow of course and generate some income in the long run, but at the moment she is just giving it a good try! I would like to invite you to meet Anne for yourself and find out just what her latest reviews are ... so hop on over to her blog: What Mommy Says!

You ask, why did I choose to interview Ann for a Personality Feature? ... it is because she is unique, she is special, she is one of a kind!

Wednesday, October 22, 2008

If you are looking for a banner for your Blogger site, a widget, an Etsy banner, avatar, promotional materials like hang tags, business cards .... or maybe a design update ... then you must learn about Vanessa of Paperbackdesigns.

I am going to let Vanessa speak for herself, "Ever felt frustrated with the same old boring look of your blog? I know. I've been there. It's a good thing that Paperback Designs is here to save the day! My main purpose is for your blog to stand out with tantalizing awesomeness to the 100th level!

Paperback Designs offers free beautiful blogger templates just for you. All you have to do is to choose from the wide selections of linkwares. And if you want a totally unique template just for you to use, I mean ONLY you, then take a look around the premades! OR better yet, let me design a custom look for your blog! And it's very affordable!"

Still interested? Then let me just put it in a little list for you: WHAT'S FREE?

1. FREE Blogger Templates (widget friendly)

2. FREE Badges (show your style)

3. Auctioned Blogger Designs (starting at $5 US)

Pretty good hun? Now Vanessa is also offering beautiful One-Of-A-Kind Blogger Templates - very affordable at $20.00 and custom templates that are designed along with your specific ideas of just what you want.

You might wonder why I am sharing this with you. BECAUSE I AM SO PLEASED with the work that Vanessa did for me at a very afforadable price. I had her do the banner for this blog - Overthetopaprons - she worked very closely with me to come up with a design that I absolutely love. I was so pleased I had her do my Etsy banner for Over The Top Aprons.etsy.com, business cards, hang tags, avatar, my Entre card widget, and the button to link on the side. I was very impressed how she was able to take my information and design it to suit my style which is entirely different from her personal style. That is precisely why I chose her over so many other designers. She has the ability to gather your ideas, your information and design it to truly represent who you are. So, I am happy to share this with all of you - interested in taking a look at her other work .... then hop on over to Paperbackdesigns and she all the incredible things she has to offer.

Monday, October 20, 2008

Entrecard .... Well, I learned something new. I have two blogs: http://themommyandmeboutique.blogspot.com and http://overthetopaprons.blogspot.com. For several days I kept receiving e-mail saying that I had Adverts waiting for me to accept/reject. I would go to Entrecard on TheMommyandMeBoutique and no Adverts were waiting. I could not figure it out. So I asked for Tech Support in the Entrecard Forums. And, Administration responded promptly with the following response - which cleared things up very quickly! Thanks Entrecard Administration.

Administrator

The ad requests are probably coming in on your linked blog. You have to switch to that blog then go to the Dashboard, and you'll see the ads there. Each linked blog has its own Dashboard and ads.

Saturday, October 18, 2008

As president, John McCain would nominate judges who understand that the role of the Court is not to subvert the rights of the people by legislating from the bench. Critical to Constitutional balance is ensuring that, where state and local governments do act to preserve the traditional family, the Courts must not overstep their authority and thwart the Constitutional right of the people to decide this question.

The family represents the foundation of Western Civilization and civil society and John McCain believes the institution of marriage is a union between one man and one woman. It is only this definition that sufficiently recognizes the vital and unique role played by mothers and fathers in the raising of children, and the role of the family in shaping, stabilizing, and strengthening communities and our nation.

As with most issues vital to the preservation and health of civil society, the basic responsibility for preserving and strengthening the family should reside at the level of government closest to the people. In their wisdom, the Founding Fathers reserved for the States the authority and responsibility to protect and strengthen the vital institutions of our civil society. They did so to ensure that the voices of America's families could not be ignored by an indifferent national government or suffocated through filibusters and clever legislative maneuvering in Congress.

Human Dignity and the Sanctity of Life

Overturning Roe v. Wade

John McCain believes Roe v. Wade is a flawed decision that must be overturned, and as president he will nominate judges who understand that courts should not be in the business of legislating from the bench.

Constitutional balance would be restored by the reversal of Roe v. Wade, returning the abortion question to the individual states. The difficult issue of abortion should not be decided by judicial fiat.

However, the reversal of Roe v. Wade represents only one step in the long path toward ending abortion. Once the question is returned to the states, the fight for life will be one of courage and compassion - the courage of a pregnant mother to bring her child into the world and the compassion of civil society to meet her needs and those of her newborn baby. The pro-life movement has done tremendous work in building and reinforcing the infrastructure of civil society by strengthening faith-based, community, and neighborhood organizations that provide critical services to pregnant mothers in need. This work must continue and government must find new ways to empower and strengthen these armies of compassion. These important groups can help build the consensus necessary to end abortion at the state level. As John McCain has publicly noted, "At its core, abortion is a human tragedy. To effect meaningful change, we must engage the debate at a human level."

Promoting Adoption

In 1993, John McCain and his wife, Cindy, adopted a little girl from Mother Teresa's orphanage in Bangladesh. She has been a blessing to the McCain family and helped make adoption advocacy a personal issue for the Senator.

The McCain family experience is not unique; millions of families have had their lives transformed by the adoption of a child. As president, motivated by his personal experience, John McCain will seek ways to promote adoption as a first option for women struggling with a crisis pregnancy. In the past, he cosponsored legislation to prohibit discrimination against families with adopted children, to provide adoption education, and to permit tax deductions for qualified adoption expenses, as well as to remove barriers to interracial and inter-ethnic adoptions.

Saturday, October 11, 2008

History of Aprons: First it might be fun to know the beginning of the word "apron". The French used the word "naperon" which meant a napkin or a small table covering. The English word developed into "apron".

Aprons were worn long before the 18th Century for various reasons but it was during the 18th Century that aprons were pinned to the clothing. After that, the aprons changed in styles ranging from long aprons to purposefully covering garments to lovely prints, beautiful full sashes, and on to the half aprons that tie around the waist. Often called "waist aprons".

Today,s aprons are used in the kitchen for cooking, entertaining, or sometimes just for a "fun" look it denotes. Today's fabrics can range from cottons, plastic, satin, faux fur, brocade ... what ever the event or what ever the inspiration. But, whatever your style may be aprons are definitely on the comeback and they are to be enjoyed and to be used and they are surely to stay!

If you have any other tips please leave in the comments. I would appreciate it.

ADDED NOTE; Some of you may have noticed that this information is duplicated on my blog: themommyandmeboutique. I am eventually going to phase out that blog, themommyandmeboutique and concentrate on my new blog, overthetopaprons. I will post a notice when this takes place. Thanks again to all of you.